I’m a book lover and addicted to buying books. Of course, my ability to read varies depending on my circumstances, but when I see a book that I like its appearance and content, I feel an involuntary attraction to buy it, and may God bless the timing. I used to be a member of a library from which I borrowed books I liked to read but didn’t want to buy. Fate had it that I started attending book fair events from 2012 to 2014. During these three years, I bought a large quantity of books, most of which were beautiful, useful, and great, and all the preferences I could mention wouldn’t suffice. I started reading them, of course, but time wasn’t on my side. So, after 2014, I decided not to buy books anymore, and I wouldn’t attend book fairs until I finished the books I had. To the extent that when I participated in the fair with my book “Lost Country’s Biography” in 2015, I only attended the signing ceremony and bought only two books that I wanted to buy. I didn’t attend the following years’ events until 2020, and even when I participated in book requests and readings from “Nour”, I didn’t attend the signing ceremonies at the fair.
In November 2022, I joined the Abjad app. Frankly, I was impressed beyond words. Diverse, beautiful, and modern books. I read a very large quantity of books, much more than I was used to, and my daily reading time increased significantly. I read new books still coming out this year, including beautiful novels selected for the long list of the Arabic Booker Prize, books by Naguib Mahfouz and Bahaa Taher, and books by Dr. Ahmed Khaled Tawfik, some of which I already had in paper copies, but I preferred to read them on Abjad. I read books on economics, a genre I don’t particularly like, and therefore don’t buy, but I read two pages every day. If I liked the book, I continued; otherwise, I didn’t. I also read religious books, historical books of various kinds, and books on self-care, which are not related to personal development in the common sense, but are life experiences. There are children’s books, and books by Kamel Kilani, the “Man of the Impossible” series, and many translated books on various subjects. Even if I’m not interested in some, I can browse through them to get an idea of what they’re about.
I feel like I have a public library at home, and with the books, I can browse and read at any time. What’s more important, when I go out, I don’t get bored waiting, whether at the doctor’s or anywhere else with waiting. I just open the app, and my Abjad library works without the need for the internet. I’m very happy with the experience and even happier with the competition that Abjad is conducting to encourage reading and the beautiful prizes. I hope all of you participate in it.
Arabic